What breaks most · 1990 to 2026 model years
Honda Civic problems by year
Owners have filed 15,927 safety complaints with NHTSA about the Honda Civic across model years 1990 to 2026. Three years stand out: 2006 for engine complaints, 2007 for suspension complaints and 2001 for powertrain and transmission complaints. The quietest years are 1990, 1992 and 1991.
- Years to check closely: 2006, 2007, 2001
- Fewest complaints: 1990, 1992, 1991
- Complaints on file
- 159271990 to 2026, all trims
- Worst year
- 20061402 complaints
- Crashes reported
- 1700172 fires · 1402 injuries · 100 deaths
- Typical failure mileage
- 57kMedian where owners gave mileage
- Recall campaigns
- 364Across the years shown
Complaints by model year
Raw filings with NHTSA, not adjusted for how many were sold.
| Model year | Complaints | Crashes | Recalls | Most-reported component |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 91 | 15 | 10 | Seat belts (34) | |
| 110 | 12 | 8 | Seat belts (38) | |
| 98 | 26 | 13 | Electrical system (28) | |
| 146 | 40 | 13 | Air bags (27) | |
| 135 | 62 | 14 | Air bags (56) | |
| 199 | 84 | 12 | Air bags (76) | |
| 305 | 67 | 17 | Air bags (70) | |
| 373 | 67 | 16 | Air bags (140) | |
| 435 | 81 | 18 | Air bags (96) | |
| 338 | 61 | 15 | Electrical system (118) | |
| 287 | 73 | 18 | Air bags (82) | |
| 1079 | 147 | 27 | Powertrain and transmission (403) | |
| 702 | 112 | 24 | Air bags (241) | |
| 499 | 90 | 24 | Air bags (140) | |
| 350 | 47 | 15 | Air bags (133) | |
| 314 | 74 | 15 | Air bags (127) | |
| 1402 | 78 | 15 | Engine (227) | |
| 1204 | 48 | 9 | Suspension (246) | |
| 916 | 62 | 7 | Air bags (177) | |
| 395 | 42 | 8 | Air bags (95) | |
| 396 | 31 | 8 | Air bags (96) | |
| 168 | 22 | 9 | Air bags (51) | |
| 454 | 55 | 3 | Air bags (149) | |
| 319 | 29 | 0 | Air bags (114) | |
| 290 | 30 | 2 | Powertrain and transmission (98) | |
| 379 | 37 | 1 | Powertrain and transmission (176) | |
| 1078 | 36 | 5 | Steering (442) | |
| 591 | 23 | 6 | Steering (170) | |
| 736 | 26 | 6 | Steering (309) | |
| 425 | 26 | 4 | Steering (108) | |
| 222 | 15 | 5 | Unknown or other (36) | |
| 142 | 5 | 4 | Steering (62) | |
| 881 | 34 | 4 | Steering (731) | |
| 252 | 19 | 4 | Steering (191) | |
| 120 | 12 | 3 | Steering (59) | |
| 69 | 10 | 2 | Steering (27) | |
| 27 | 2 | 0 | Forward collision system (6) |
What fails on the 2006 Honda Civic
| Component | Share of complaints | Filings | Crashes | Parts for this job |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| EngineEngine gaskets and seals | 16% |
227 | 1 | Shop engine parts for the 2006 Honda Civic |
| VisibilityMirrors and glass | 15% |
210 | 2 | Shop visibility parts for the 2006 Honda Civic |
| SuspensionStruts, springs and control arms | 14% |
203 | 5 | Shop suspension parts for the 2006 Honda Civic |
| Air bags | 13% |
180 | 41 | Check recalls for air bags on NHTSA.gov |
| Engine and coolingRadiators, thermostats and cooling | 11% |
151 | 1 | Shop engine and cooling parts for the 2006 Honda Civic |
| Electrical systemAlternators, starters and ignition | 7% |
100 | 1 | Shop electrical system parts for the 2006 Honda Civic |
| Body and structureDoors, latches and body hardware | 6% |
78 | 4 | Shop body and structure parts for the 2006 Honda Civic |
| Powertrain and transmissionTransmission parts | 5% |
76 | 3 | Shop powertrain and transmission parts for the 2006 Honda Civic |
One complaint can name more than one component, so shares add to more than 100%. "Unknown or other" is NHTSA's uncategorized bucket and is shown but never ranked.
In owners' words
Complaint narratives as filed with NHTSA, trimmed for length.
-
There's crack in the engine block, my car out of no wear started over heating we thought it was the water pump then we took it in to get it look at and turn out there's cracks on the engine block
-
I financed a 2007 Honda Civic on July 30 2025, this car has a faulty fuel pump from Roseville car group. There is no check engine light on, this just appeared this afternoon Aug 2nd 2025.
-
I recently bought a 2001 honda civic, 5speed. It was driving fine, until it suddenly started making grinding or weird noises. I couldn't shift and now the gears are locked up. It happened suddenly after no problems.
How to read this page
Every figure comes from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's public complaint database, which holds every safety-related defect complaint filed by owners since 1995. We refresh it monthly and count each complaint once per component it names. Data through September 6, 2026.
NHTSA only accepts safety-related complaints. Rattles, paint, infotainment bugs and other annoyances are under-reported here, so this page is a map of what fails in ways owners consider dangerous, not a full reliability score.
Counts are raw. Use the year-over-year shape and the component mix, not the absolute numbers. Where a component maps to parts we stock, the row links to that category filtered to the year you are viewing. Air bag and seat belt complaints link to the recall checker instead, because those repairs are almost always covered.
Common questions
Which Honda Civic years have the most problems?
By NHTSA complaint volume, 2006, 2007, 2001 carry the most filings on the Honda Civic. The 2006 alone has 1402 complaints, led by engine.
What is the most common Honda Civic problem?
On the 2006 model year, the most-reported component is engine with 227 complaints. The table above lists the top components for every year.
At what mileage do Honda Civic problems start?
The median mileage at failure across all Honda Civic complaints that include mileage is about 57,000 miles. Older model years skew higher; the per-year figure is in the "at a glance" card.
Are these complaints verified?
No. NHTSA publishes complaints as submitted and does not investigate individual filings. Patterns across hundreds of complaints are meaningful; a single one is not.